Coaches we love

In life we must choose our path. We all must also choose our paths at the gym; Whom we allow into our lives, whom we partner with. I once had a boxing coach tell me, "trainer and athlete are like a boyfriend and girlfriend." He further explained that while our relationship may not be sexual, their must be a certain chemistry. A level of respect, yes; but even more than that, there must be a trust. A desire.

I have recently found one of my best trainer relationships yet. A threesome of all things with an odd couple. Lenny Albert, a former taxi driver; a Golden Gloves champion, and one of the most patient trainers I have ever met. Then there is Ramon Matthews. New to the gym, he's young with an old soul. One's specialty is breathing and technique, while the other specializes in conditioning and defense. While one can recite old matches and boxers' quirks from memory, the other is great at looking them up digitally in a matter of seconds. To further cement the distance between the two, Lenny has recently had shoulder surgery leaving him without use of his lead right. 

Although I thought that perhaps utilizing two trainers together was going to cause conflict between personalities, it has actually allowed for the perfect pairing. Ramon is comfortable in his role as "assistant trainer", and Lenny humbly recognizes that being a one-armed trainer is no good for anyone involved. That being said, it must have been no coincidence that these two naturally assume two very different roles each session. Lenny works form and placement from a distance while Ramon critiques. Every 30 minutes or so, they switch. Now it is Ramon's turn to work mitts and movement while Lenny stands off to the side and calls out breathing techniques and adjustments to footwork. We finish with rounds on the heavy bag. While I work in repetitive movements they both stand off to the side, calling out adjustments and whispering among themselves like proud parents, or in this case, coaches.